New software to support interest in extreme science

The University of Chicago’s Flash Center for Computational Science released a major new version of supercomputer code, called FLASH 4-alpha, on April 29. Based on previous software for simulating exploding stars, this is the first version of the FLASH code that has extensive capabilities for simulating high-energy density physics experiments.

“The enhanced FLASH code is an open toolset for designing and analyzing experiments that address questions about the nature of planetary interiors, the creation of elements via nuclear processes, and how matter behaves in violent shocks and other extreme conditions,” said Don Lamb, Flash Center director and the Robert A. Millikan Distinguished Service Professor in Astronomy & Astrophysics.

“These facilities use extremely powerful lasers or large amounts of electric current to generate conditions that allow scientists to investigate and address important issues in areas such as astrophysics, material science, planetary science and fusion energy,” said Milad Fatenejad, a Flash Center research scientist. “Simulations play a vital role in demonstrating the viability of proposed experiments and analyzing experimental results. The enhanced FLASH code will be able to fill both of these roles.”

The Flash Center is already using the new capabilities in FLASH to simulate radiative shock experiments conducted by the Center for Radiative Shock Hydrodynamics at the University of Michigan and at the Omega Laser Facility, said Fatenejad.

LLNL and other laboratories have developed highly capable codes for in-house research in HEDP, Lamb said. “Unlike FLASH, these codes were never designed with the academic community in mind,” he said. “Having a workhorse open toolset for scientists at universities is absolutely essential, and until now has not existed.”

“We are very excited about the science these new capabilities will make possible,” said Flash Center associate director Anshu Dubey. “The Center has been able to add HEDP capabilities to the FLASH code and make it run efficiently on the next generation of computers thanks to a decade of funding by the DOE NNSA ASC Academic Strategic Alliance Program and recent funding by the DOE Office of Advanced Scientific Computing Research, as well as access to the world’s fastest computers through the NNSA ASC Program and the Office of ScienceINCITE Program.”

More than 700 scientists worldwide have used FLASH code, and they have published more than 400 papers reporting results based on its use. Although most of these scientists have used FLASH for astrophysical research, others have modified it for simulating atmospheric physics and biological processes. IBM, NVIDIA and other companies have also licensed FLASH to test and develop hardware and software.

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This artist’s conception depicts a fusion experiment at the National Ignition Facility at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory showing the target chamber and various diagnostic probes. The facility and its target chamber will be used for high-energy density physics experiments of the kind that UChicago’s FLASH code now can simulate.